california cherry cola, sandy skies in arizona
by teatart
Summary: "of course i like you. you're an amazing girl." inspired by lovewithyourhart's gmw genderbend on tumblr, i wrote the campfire scene from texas 2.


**R** yder had left the two of them there with the dumbest excuse Mason had ever heard. Getting ice cream with Kismet was the reason he left him alone with Lucille after blurting out that Mason had feelings for her. Because things couldn't get stranger, because things needed to change in their friendship. Because of all the things happening in his life, he _needed_ things to get more complicated. The thought of Ryder plotting almost distracted Mason from the situation at hand.

He was alone with Lucille, who was looking after Ryder's disappearing shadow with an ever confused look on her face. The blonde girl that has been in his head nonstop since he saw her sitting alone on the subway. The girl from Georgia that seemed to look past his snarkiness and sarcasm and could care less about all the southern nicknames he had made for her.

The blonde girl that–

"You like me?" She asked, her thick brows furrowed in confusion. She had taken a seat beside him now and her green eyes were looking through him.

"No." The word slipped out of his mouth so naturally, he was impressed. He almost believed it.

Lucille took a deep breath as if she needed energy to try and understand everything, "Mason, why didn't you want me to ride in the rodeo?" He didn't blame her. Ryder blurt out that him and Lucille were like siblings and that Mason had to feel 'whatever he was feeling', then went on his merry way with Kismet. No explanation, not even a convincing excuse.

"Because I didn't want you to win and think that southerners are better than northerners. I was trying to protect my pride." He said like it was obvious. What other reason would he have to tell her to get off the bull?

"I don't think that's it." She said to him like she knew all of his secrets.

"I don't think that's it." He mocked her, deepening her accent and making his voice higher. Usually it was fun, the little game they always played.

Lucille scoffed, "I _don't_ talk like that, I really don't. Is that really how you see me?" The way she said it, her voice was soft, genuine. The usual Lucille wouldn't pay him mind, it was all just to get a rise out of her anyway. To see her perfect demeanor change for once, but it was different this time and there was nothing fun about it. It was a different that Mason knew would change something no matter what his answer was.

He got up, not wanting to look at her knowing he might say something he shouldn't if he did, "Of course, I don't see you like that. Can we just-can we just look at the fire, please." The crackling ember in the middle, the campfire that had seemed like a good idea to for them all to be together. Even though they were out in the open with a path that led back to her Gammy Joan's house, Mason felt smothered, so he stood up and moved to the other log to collect his thoughts.

"Fine." She huffed and stared at the fire. Mason followed her lead though from the corner of his eye he could see Lucille's eyes lose interest in the fire and instead focus on something else-him.

He looked at her briefly, "Cut it out." She lifted her fingers from her lap for a second as if to surrender and then looked back at the fire. Mason did the same.

Except, the silhouette in the corner of his vision had once again turned her head to look at him. He looked at her, annoyed that she was so persistent. The moment they made eye contact she looked away but Mason didn't. And just like clockwork, Lucille's eyes found him again.

Mason sighed, "Can we just stop? I just want everything to stop! It's been bad enough that I've been keeping this secret from Ryder this whole time."

"What secret?"

"You guys are so much alike, I thought you were just like brother and sister too." How naive of him. Lucille's reaction to being called Ryder's sister was proof enough that he was wrong.

"Why?" She didn't sound angry or annoyed, just curious.

Memories of seeing Lucille smile and joke with Ryder filled his mind, "You're at your best when you're just talking to each other, looking out for each other. That's what I believed but I kept it a secret. And now the secrets out so I don't have to carry it around with me anymore." He took a deep breath, "I just don't want to keep anything from him anymore."

Lucille got up and Mason thought that meant the end of their talk. But he was so very wrong when the words that came out of her mouth wasn't, "We should head back", but, "So you don't make fun of me because you like me?"

Damn Ryder's big mouth.

"I'm just going to watch this fire." He hoped Lucille would get the message. They weren't talking about this anymore. He refused to talk about it anymore.

"Mason, why do you make fun of me?" She persisted and that did it. The ounce of patience he was trying to cling onto was gone and the filter between his mind and mouth disappeared along with it.

He looked at her with a dry smile and rose from his spot on the log, "Because you're easy to make fun of."

"Okay then stop." Lucille said but he ignored her.

"Because you're a _Georgia Peach_. Because you wear cowboy boots to school everyday like that's normal."

"Would you stop?"

"Because I just saw you ride a bull three hours ago and I've never seen any girl in her right mind do that."

"Okay I get it."

Mason continued on his tangent despite her protests, "No, you don't. Don't you think if I had feelings for you, I would've told you instead of pushing you to be with my best friend? Don't you think I would have to be a little more stupid to allow myself to think about you like that. I'd have to be a complete idiot to think we'd ever work because I'm damaged goods and you're...you. Get the picture, _darlin_ -"

Soft hands cupped his face and pulled him into Lucille's pretty features. The flood of words that were jumbling around in his head stayed stuck in his throat and he froze. Her emerald eyes staring so gently at him, like he could do no wrong and Mason wanted nothing more than to close the mere centimeters they were from each other and kiss her.

Lucille dropped her hands and the moment was over before he could do the unthinkable. He stepped away from her, hoping distance would stop his mind from fabricating ridiculous thoughts about the two of them.

"Why did you do that?" Mason internally cringed at how low and shaky his voice sounded.

"I-I don't know I just wanted you to stop."

"You couldn't think of another way to stop me?" He asked still in a daze. Lucille blinked up at him, her mouth open like she was trying to think up something.

"Not at the time, no. I'm sorry." Mason hated how easily any irritation he had towards her left the moment she glanced over at him and tucked her long blonde hair behind her ear, her nervous habit.

Mason squashed his desire to tuck a loose strand behind her ear with the rest and muttered the horrible truth that he hadn't been able to admit to Ryder or himself, "You don't have to be sorry, Lucy. Of course I like you. You're an amazing girl. If you would've gotten hurt, I don't know what I would've done."

He took a seat before he could start fidgeting and Lucille sat beside him in silence. The two stayed a while before returning back to the house, soaking in the remaining warmth of the crackling fire.


End file.
